Disposable foot slipper



Feb. 3, 1953 o. G. FRANCE DISPOSABLE FOOTCIPER z SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed March :5 1950 INVENTOR OLIVE G. FRANCE mm MW ATTORNEY o. G. FRANCE nIsPosA-BLE FOOT SLIPPER Feb. 3, 1953 2 SI-iEETSSHEET 2 Filed March 5, 1950 FIG. 6

1 N VENTOR' OL'IVE a. FRANCE ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 3, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE DISPOSABLE FOOT SLIPPER i e 6- ranc Ken Ohi Application March 3, 1950, Serial No. 147,399

This invention relates to a disposable foot slipper, and, in particular, relates to a singleuse, disposable slipper.

One object of the invention is to provide a disposa le sl pper of the type des which in a given size thereof is self-adjusting to conform to a wide range of foot sizes, both as to width and length.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved slipper as characterized in the previous object, which may have folds in the same when worn, without causing material discomfort to the wearer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a slipper of the type described which may be manufactured and sold at an extremely low cost, which is highly essential to commercial and consumer acceptance of disposable type slippers.

These and other objects of the invention will be manifest from the following brief description and the accompanying drawings.

Of the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevation of one embodiment of the improved slipper.

Figures 2, 3 and 4 are enlarged fragmentary cross-sections taken substantially on the lines 2-2, 33 and 4-4, respectively, in Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a top plan view of a blank which is superposed on a similar blank for making the slipper of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is a top plan view of the slipper of Figure 1 as the same would appear on the foot of a wearer thereof.

Referring particularly to Figures 1 to 4 of the drawings, the improved disposable slipper comprises a foot-receiving or enclosing body l formed of thin, flexible and relatively soft sheet material, such as crepe paper of the variety commonly used for making paper flowers and table decorations. In the upper part of the body is an elongated opening I I for passage of the foot into the body, said opening being defined by front, rear and opposite side marginal portions l2, l3 and I4, I 4, respectively.

The body Il] may comprise two superposed, relatively flat blanks I5, l (see Figure 5) of said crepe material, and of generally ovate shape, attached along mating outer marginal edge portions in opposite directions from the front and rear edges of the foot opening H. For attaching said outer marginal edge portions, the same may be sewed with a suitable unobtrusive and preferably slightly resilient cross-stitch, as indicated at 15 (see Figures 1 and 2), although cement or other suitable adhesive or bonding means may be utilized.

The marginal portions 13 and it, alone a .SU-b' stantial length of opening H, are hemmed and stitched or basted with elastic thread IT o dr w the corresponding rear portions of body in into shirred condition, as shown in Figure 1. For forming said hemmed portions, elongated tabs l5a are provided on the blanks I5 .(see Figure, 5).

As best illustrated in Figures 1 and 3, the forward marginal portions of the opening ll, along a substantial proportion of the length thereof, are left unreinforced and unstitched to permit maximum freedom to the. user of the slipper in applying the same onto a foot, as well as for obviating strain which might rupture the slipper or interfere with blood circulation in the foot.

characteristically, crepe paper is relatively inelastic in the direction of generally parallel grains or crinkes thereof and substantially elastic in direction across the grains. In the present instance the blanks l5 are cut so that these grains will extend widthwise of the slipper body NJ, as indicated by parallel shade lines in Figures 1, 5 and 6, so that the material of the slipper will stretch lengthwise, for purposes to be described.

The improved slipper is particularly useful for temporary or single-use purposes, such as by stockingless women while trying on shoes in a shoe store. The slipper in such instance is not only utilized for sanitary reasons, but provides a device which takes the place of stockings for more accurate fitting of the shoes for subsequent wearing over stockings. The slippers may also be worn for temporary uses, as while waiting for while-you-wait shoe repairs, or during physical examinations in medical clinics or doctors oflices, for example.

In any such use, the slipper, upon being applied over the foot in known manner, will conform to the shape thereof substantially as shown in Figure 6. The substantial width of the slipper body, particularly at the central part thereof, allows the same to conform to the lateral width of the foot at the widest part, and the unrestricted forward portion of the foot opening will open up to a v-shape to permit the wide part of the body self-adjustingly to conform to feet of varying widths. The elasticity of the crepe paper longitudinally of the slipper body provides a substantial degree of adjustability which allows the forepart of the body to conform to the toe outline of the foot, and at the same time substantial variations in lengths of feet may be accommodated due to the yielding longitudinal expansibility of the shirred rear portion of the slipper. In other words, it is possible by use of the present construction, to provide three sizes 3 of paper slippers, namely, small, medium and large, which will fit the normal range of foot sizes of both men and women. For instance, the smallest size in the fiat, as shown in Figure 1,

may have a maximum length of 11 inches and a maximum width of 4 inches. Larger sizes may be proportionately similar. It is to be noted that because of the soft nature of the crepe paper the slipper upon application to a foot may have portions folded or creased, to make the same conform to the shape of the foot, without adding bulk which would materially affect the comfort of the wearer, either with or without a shoe applied over the slipper.

Because of the economy with which the abovedescribed slippers may be manufactured, the same may be worn once, as for the uses described, and then discarded.

Modifications may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A disposable slipper comprising a footreceiving body of thin, flexible material having an elongated opening in the top extending longitudinally of the body and defined by marginal edge portions extending from the rear of the body and converging to a point at substantially the rear end of the toe portion, said marginal edge portions being hemmed around the rear of the opening and forwardly to terminal points intermediate the length of said opening at opposite sides thereof in the instep region of said body, said hemmed portions being stitched with elastic REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 272,470 Pond Feb. 20, 1883 311,018 Lord Jan. 20, 1885 744,798 Roberts Nov. 24, 1903 1,068,942 Siegel July 29, 1913 1,954,216 Miller Apr. 10, 1934 2,305,926 Kohler Dec. 22, 1942 2,369,254 Roman Feb. 13, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 575,245 Great Britain Feb. 8, 1946 OTHER REFERENCES Vogue Dressmaking Book, 10th ed., page 77, illustration #16. (Available by phostatic copy in Div. 24.) 

